Imaging and Optical Science

Imaging and Optical Science is a highly interdisciplinary area of study that combines expertise in fields spanning optics, materials, mathematics, computer science, and information science. Whether it’s probing a biological specimen or detecting an obstacle during navigation, light measurement in combination with advanced signal processing has demonstrated the ability to reveal information that was undetectable even a short while ago. Among a wide spectrum of exciting research problems in this domain, ECE faculty are currently involved in novel sensing and spectroscopic material design, optoelectronic imaging device development, integrated system and algorithm design, as well as microscopy and spectroscopy related to applications in biology, brain science, medicine, defense and security. Research activities in Imaging and Optical Science reach far beyond the department and the college thanks to cross-disciplinary collaborations facilitated by the Photonics Center, the Hariri Institute, and the Center for Integrated Life Sciences & Engineering, just to name a few. We invite you to explore our research activities, meet our teams, and read about our success stories by visiting the faculty, lab and research center pages below.

Affiliated Faculty

Osama Alshaykh, Irving Bigio, David Boas, David Castañón, Ji-Xin Cheng, Farouk El-Baz, Vivek Goyal, Clem Karl, Janusz Konrad, Robert Kotiuga, Min-Chang Lee, Jerome Mertz, Abdoulaye Ndao, Siddharth Ramachandran, Michelle Sander, Joshua Semeter, Selim Ünlü,  Lei Tian, Brian Walsh

Affiliated Labs
Affiliated Research Centers
In the news:
  • April 2, 2024

    Professor Cheng Receives Spectrochemical Analysis Award

    Professor Ji-Xin Cheng has been named the recipient of this year’s American Chemical Society Division of Analytical Chemistry Spectrochemical Analysis Award. [ More ]

  • March 18, 2024

    Bringing the Brain Into Focus

    Professor Tianyu Wang receives grant from the Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative for reinventing a quantum-inspired light source to improve deep-tissue imaging. [ More ]

  • February 20, 2024

    Professor Ji-Xin Cheng receives SPIE Biophotonics Technology Innovator Award

    Professor Ji-Xin Cheng is the recipient of the 2024 SPIE Biophotonics Technology Innovator Award. He earned this prestigious award for the “invention and commercialization of mid-infrared photothermal microscopy that allows highly sensitive dye-free bond-selective imaging of living cells and organisms.” The mIRage system, based on Cheng’s IP on mid-infrared photothermal microscopy and produced by Photothermal Spectroscopy Corp at Santa Barbara, has been delivered to over 100 research labs in 15 countries worldwide. [ More ]

  • January 22, 2024

    A Bright New Light: Tianyu Wang Joins ECE

    BU ECE’s newest Assistant Professor believes in the power of convergent research to spark novel technological advances. [ More ]

  • December 4, 2023

    Professor Roberto Paiella Elected Optica Fellow

    He was awarded this honor “for outstanding contributions to the development of novel optoelectronic devices based on quantum-confined systems and photonic nanostructures.” [ More ]